ha, i clicked comments to write the exact same thing already commented. HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE??

P.E.I. has great mussels...the reason exactly why they are so popular; they are inexpensive, they are of good quality. FYI, P.E.I. is an eastern province that also 'produces' and exports lobsters and potatoes.

I'm not sure Bittman understand the cultivation process and the natural growing process of mussels. It's not exactly the case of cultuvated vs wild here... "The best mussels are the ones you harvest yourself, from a nice dock or outcropping of rocks in a cold tidal inlet" There are some important risks (toxins!) with just grabbing mussels... With cultivation, there is monitoring (they don't grow in pools, but in natural bays).

If you are worried about buying from the small guy, 'PEI mussels' is not a company...there are a lot of smaller guys selling the PEI mussels you are buying.

So please, buy them, put them in a big pot with white wine and shallots, and just enjoy their simplicity ! :-)

PS: I am biased since the BF is fromt he island.

love the snarkiness from the canadians...we americans need a kick in the butt sometimes.

Prince...Edward....Island..

In writing the rule is to name something first and then provide the abbreviation afterwords if I'm not mistaken. In this case there is the assumption that you will know what PEI means right off the bat. Judging by the amount of customers who have asked me what it means it's not as obvious as many people think. Does that make them ignorant of geography, food knowledge or abbreviations?

My experience with PEI's are that they are a good go to mussel, always fresh, very clean and a nice flavor.

Bouchot mussels are quite nice.

Yes, I have to agree. PEI mussels are among the best in the world. And they're even better when you get them fresh and local.

Prince Edward Island is one of the nicest places to visit. It's inexpensive, quaint, relaxing and accessible. Being from PEI, I would encourage anyone to take the time to look into a vacation here. You can rent a seaside cottage for between $500 and $1,000 a week (or more, obviously, depending on your tastes), rent a car and take your time touring the island. The beaches are incredible, especially in August, which is when the water is the warmest. And it's a lovely drive along the eastern US seaboard, if that's where you'd be coming from.

"Otherwise, they’re safe, and if the shells of a couple don’t open when cooked, pry them open and eat ’em anyway. " (Giving Mussels their Passport)

Huh....?! That's in the salad article that's related to Bittman's post...That's a big no-no, by the way !! If they stay close...don't eat them...

stay closed* sorry...

Seriously? That was a wake-up call.

PEI really is one of the nicest places to visit; everyone who has been there thinks so. Its reputation precedes it, as everyone I know who has never been wants to go. Take a trip to PEI, you won’t regret it.

I'm an American, and was surprised that it was assumed I would not know what PEI stands for - didn't everyone grow up reading Anne of Green Gables? Or at least watching the PBS series?

Why should I know what PEI stands for? I wouldn't expect a Canadian, or even another Californian for that matter, to know that SLO stands for San Luis Obispo. For all I know it's a reference to some process or hormone or something, like RBGH or something.

PEI mussels are the BEST. Go there and eat them - actually, eat everything else that PEI produces too, it's all glorious. Ok, now i'm longing for the island...

I knew what it stood for because of L.M. Montgomery, but why do Canadians expect Americans to automatically know what P.E.I. stands for and then get so snippy about it? The defensiveness is not attractive.

I would be surprised if people who had purchased or consumed mussels designated as PEI didn't bother to find out what the letters stood for.

Tiamat_the_Red, why shouldn't you know what P.E.I. stands for? I know all the names of States (though like that episode of Friends, it would take me a long time to list them all without repeating myself!), so I don't think it is unreasonable for you to know the names of all the Provinces and Territories. There aren't that many, you know.

SLO is a city? P.E.I. is one of our Provinces. I'd be ashamed as a Canadian to not recognize one of the 50 states.

Wait, what? Seriously? It's an entire freaking Canadian province, that's why you should know what it stands for. And it's not like there's dozens of provinces to remember or anything, like the states - there are just 10 provinces and 3 territories! I mean, if some Canadian didn't know what NY stood for, I can only imagine the outrage and mockery that would ensue, insinuations that one lives under a rock, etc. etc. etc. I mean, come on.

Geographic knowledge aside, wouldn't you want to know what that stood for before eating the mussels?

"Are Americans that ignorant?"

Nice. The writer thinks some might not know what P.E.I. stands for, so you assume that she's correct.

That said, how is it "that ignorant" for someone not to know the abbreviation for a small Canadian province? I had a friend from British Columbia who asked me if I could name all the U.S. states. I proceeded to rattle them off, and when I got to "Maryland" she said, "wait, what's Maryland?" "It's a state on the east coast," I replied. And she asked, "Really, are you sure?"

Maryland is a lot larger than P.E.I., and I wasn't even using an abbreviation. So I guess that raises the question: are Canadians really that ignorant?

PEI snarkiness aside.....Yes, PEI mussels are great, if you're on the East Coast. If you're living in Seattle or Portland, though, they come from way too far away to be practical.

The best ones in the Northwest come from Penn Cove, a little inlet off Whidbey Island in Puget Sound (or the Salish Sea, if you prefer). They've got a mild texture and a light, sweet flavor. They are fast growing, harvested year round, and are beloved by chefs all over the West coast.

Excuse me? I'd like to mention that Canadians are Americans too. Those of us from the U.S. often forget that we are not alone in North America.

Just saying.
I'm sure the mussels from PEI are very good, but coming from the upper left hand corner of the U.S., I tend to eat locally.
Fresh from the salty sea=yum.

Seriously, as a Canadian I've met Americans who were honestly shocked we had a car rather than a dog sled. Honest to goodness shocked. Its frustrating that we are bombarded with Americanisms yet many Americans can't name a single province. And they are PROVINCES not states. We only have a few, do some research. We're more important to you than you think. And much less "ignorant" than we've been made out to be by a few nasty comments.

I'm ignorant, you're ignorant, we're all ignorant. The point is, the mussels are delicious. Whee!

http://www.abreadaday.com

I've actually never seen mussels described as PEI mussels. but maybe I'm either not shopping in the right places or my mussels don't come from PEI. Because of this I didn't know what it stood for. And I know the names of the provinces, but I don't know all their abbreviations, much like I'm sure many Canadians don't know all the abbreviations for the states here.

aprilhorsman,

No one here called them states rather than provinces, so what's your point? And no one actually called Canadians ignorant, either. My question, "are Canadians that ignorant?" was merely rhetorical, based on the fact that others called Americans -- sorry, citizens of the United States of America who are not the only Americans -- ignorant.

This American knew what PEI stood for, but all credit goes to Miss Montgomery and her lovable Anne. But I've never actually seen mussels referred to as "PEI"--in my mussel experience, it's usually written out fully as "Prince Edward Island." Love 'em.

Not to add to the great Canada vs. US debate...

but....

Most Canadians would never refer to themselves as American, regardless of the fact that we share the North American continent. I've heard the "Canadians are Americans too!" train before, and I always disagree. I know it's an inclusive gesture, but whenever an American says that, it comes off as a little....imperialistic.

We're so proud (and apparently, defensive) of our tiny shreds of purely Canadian culture that we cling to them like delicious PEI mussels cling to rocks.

I think the defensive folks are assuming too much.

They are assuming that people think of Canada when they think of mussels.

The Maritime provinces are spectacular....The first mussels I ate (as a girl from Oklahoma) were on family vacation in P.E.I., at a church supper recommended by the owner of the campground we stayed at. Seriously, those mussels spoiled me for life!

road to avonlea! There's a pub down the street in my prairie city that makes wonderful beer infused mussel concoctions... Always PEI mussels! The Bluenose mussels are my favourite! (made with Alexander Keiths I do believe).

OH... the canadian content. I've met my quota for the day.

Marie- Eve made some great points that I agree with and planned to make.

Basically what makes PEI mussels so great is that they are consistently good due to the way they are cultivated.

So funny story, I spent every summer of my childhood (until I was about 18, I'm 21 now) in PEI, and now I live in SLO...too funny. My family owns a summer house in Malpeque (a tiny town on the Island, famous for Malpeque oysters...anyone?), and we are always excited to see PEI mussles on menus when we travel (and at home, too!). Anyway, SLO and PEI are both wonderful places to visit, it's so nice to see people from/aware of both! And hey...we're all here to learn :)

I wouldn't expect anyone who doesn't live in the US to know all the states by their state abbreviation. It's not as thought I don't know what Prince Edward Island is. I think in fact I won a geography bee with that being the final answer back in elementary school. But I guess this one failure to recognize the abbreviation as a Canadian province makes me horribly ignorant.

Also, I wouldn't even necessarily expect everyone that lives in the US to know all the states abbreviations. Much less necessarily recognize it as a state abbreviation if they saw two letters in front of something being used as a descriptor.

duh, how could you not know that?

The reason why I'd expect people to know what PEI stands for, or at least to know that it's a province, is that it is most commonly called "PEI" and not "Prince Edward Island". We don't go around saying "Ont" for "Ontario", but we DO say "PEI" to refer to my beautiful province.

And yes, they are the best.

Whether or not you knew what PEI stood for, if you've eaten more than a couple meals of shell fish or visited a restaurant with an oyster bar you'd know that most oysters and mussels and lobsters are labeled with where they are from. Even specific bays. So at least you know it's a place and not a chemical.
I'm in the group that knows PEI from Anne of Green Gables - the books and PBS series!

Like many others, I clicked "read more" just to figure out if anyone didn't know what PEI was. I might just have to go back to bed if someone has ever thought that BC Salmon was a brand....
On the other hand, PEI mussels are about as local as it will get for me in Ottawa, save zebra mussels which I doubt anyone would eat, especially out of Lake Ontario.

Oh, I can't believe I missed all this drama yesterday! Fun times.

While I think that some of my fellow Canadians have been a bit quick to name-call, I don't think it's asking too much of our American neighbours to know at least the most basic facts about our country. I know all the states, not because it was taught in school, but just because I picked them up, common knowledge-style. As North Americans we share so much in terms of politics, economy and culture, so the whole "why should I know that?" attitude is a touch ignorant, in my opinion.

That aside, PEI mussels are the best. They're particularly special to me because my first memory involves my Dad showing me, aged not quite two, how to find and pick the best ones on a family holiday to PEI. I remember taking them back to my Mum in our rental cottage, where I've no doubt she made a delicious dinner. Yum.

Geez. I know what PEI mussels are, but only as of late. I've heard of Prince Edward Island. Did i know they produced mussels 5 yrs ago? No. Did i go to a restaurant and see "PEI mussels" on it and order them without caring what the PEI stood for? Yes -- I wanted mussels. Have i EVER seen them labeled "Prince Edward Island mussels"? No. Is it therefore reasonable for a person to miss the connection of mussels--produced in Canada--specifically Prince Edward Island--hence PEI? Totally.

As for Americans needing to be able to name all the Canadian Provinces & Territories, i agree that its not really legit to say that we can be ignorant and so deal with it. At the same time, you really don't hear about Nunavut or Newfoundland all that often, so its understandable that they might pass under the radar. For god's sake, something like 20% of Americans can't even name their own president, how are they going to recognize that PEI is a province?!

As a Canadian who has been living in the US for 11 years, it no longer surprises me that Americans know very little about Canada. Sad but true. Prince Edward Island is the setting for Anne of Green Gables.

@HFXNS: I think if you scroll up and read the first few comments, you'll find that the bitchy comments began with the Canadians.

First, I knew what PEI mussels were because I love shellfish, but if I did not - I would probably assume that they were a certain type of mussel before I guessed that it was a geographic location. Like "littleneck clams" or maybe even a latin species designation.

So just because someone doesn't know what a PEI mussel is, it doesn't mean that they don't know what Prince Edward Island is.

But now I'm thinking of heading off to the grocery store... :-)

There is nothing like a P.E.I Lobster Supper. Take for instance the New Glasgow P.E.I Lobster Supper where you go into a big hall and sit at a big table where they bring you bucket after bucket of all you can eat, fresh from the water mussels with a little bowl melted butter. Yummm!

On the discussion regarding U.S. citizens lack of knowledge of Canadiana I've had this discussion many times. I realized that when I lived in California for a few years I was absolutely cut off from any Canadian media. Canada had elected a new Prime Minister at the time and it didn't even register in the local newspapers there. Here in Canada we are bombarded with Americana everyday with our newspapers, U.S. television news, entertainment and magazines. How many U.S. TV networks do we watch in Canada?? We know what is going on, in general, in the U.S. every day. How many U.S. TV networks show Canadian news...zero, I'm assuming. That's why there is a good chance that not every "American" would know what P.E.I. stands for. We should stop being offended by that.

actually, hgtv shows a number of canadian programs. that's it as far as i know, though.

and i laughed at the author not knowing what or where PEI was. silly american that i am, i knew what it was, and where even.

The best mussels have to be green lipped NZ mussels - can't beat the size or the taste!

This is all very funny! Grew up in Magdalen Island (next door to PEI) and now live in California. Seafood's much better in the St Lawrence Gulf than on the West coast, but fruits and veggies (including strawberries, and even (OMG) potatoes!! sorry PEI folks!) are better here...

I love the Canadian VS Americans thing... funny...

True story though, I had a friend who couldn't believe there was actually land East of Maine... there's actually several provinces!